If you stop contributing

We hope you don’t decide to stop making pension contributions but if you do then you may wish to consider what impact this has on your other benefits. We’ve created the below summary to show how your Income Protection cover and Life Assurance may be impacted by you leaving the Plan.

You may also wish to consider what happens to your previous contributions if you leave the Plan. Please click here for more details.

Core DC membersEx-final salary memberAuto-enrolled member

Core DC members

If you stop making contributions or opt-out of the Plan, you will become a life assurance only member. You won't be making contributions and building up any future Pension savings. Your life assurance cover would reduce to 2x basic salary lump sum payable to your dependant if you die while working for Telefónica. Your life assurance wouldn't increase if you re-joined the Plan at a future point. As a life assurance only member you also won't be covered for Telefónica's income protection scheme (regardless of whether you re-join the Plan at a future point). For more information about the benefits of being a Pension scheme member, click here.

If you're still an eligible jobholder, Telefónica will be required to re-enrol you on the 3-yearly re-enrolment date.

If you stop allocating any of your Pension Supplement to the Plan then you'll become a life assurance only member. You will continue to have the same level of life cover but you will no longer be eligible for the income protection scheme.

If you remain an eligible jobholder, you will be automatically enrolled back into the Plan at the next 3-yearly cycle at the rates shown below:

Members who chose option 3 and joined Section 1A effective from 1 July 2011

Time period

What Pension Supplement you'll receive

What allocation of your Pension Supplement must be into your pension

Remaining Pension Supplement, for you to add to your pension or to get as take-home pay

1 April 2013 - 30 June 2016

21%

3%

18%

1 July 2016 - 31 December 2016

16%

3%

13%

1 January 2017 - 31 December 2017

16%

6%

10%

1 January 2018 onwards

16%

9%

7%

If you're auto-enrolled, your contributions are invested in the Balanced Lifestyle fund. All contributions are paid through salary sacrifice, unless you tell us otherwise (see salary sacrificefor more information).

We'll put you in with a retirement age of 60, in line with your final salary Normal Retirement Age.

Once you’ve been auto-enrolled, you can choose another investment fund and a different retirement age if you prefer. For details of the investment funds available, click here.

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Member of the final salary scheme when it closed in February 2013

Contributions will be automatically allocated at:

21% of your Pension Supplement, and

Either 10% or 7.5% of the employee contribution you were paying into your final salary pension before it closed in February 2013

Your 10% or 7.5% employee contribution may be higher than it is now because, to be consistent with your Pension Supplement, it is now calculated on your pensionable pay rather than on your basic salary.

If you're auto-enrolled, your contributions are invested in the Balanced Lifestyle fund. All contributions are paid through salary sacrifice, unless you tell us otherwise (see salary sacrifice for more information).

We'll put you in with a retirement age of 60, in line with your final salary Normal Retirement Age.

Once you’ve been auto-enrolled, you can choose another investment fund and a different retirement age if you prefer. For details of the investment funds available, click here.

Read moreRead less

Auto-enrolled member

If you stop making contributions or opt-out of the Plan, you will become a life assurance only member. You won't be making contributions and building up any future Pension savings. Your life assurance cover would only be 2x basic salary lump sum payable to your dependant if you die while working for Telefónica. As a life assurance only member you also won't be covered for Telefónica's income protection scheme. For more information about the benefits of being a Pension scheme member, click here.

If you are still an eligible jobholder, Telefónica will be required to re-enrol you on the 3-yearly re-enrolment date.

Click here for more details about auto-enrolment. Telefónica's initial auto-enrolment date was April 2013.